Malaysia
Singapore
Thailand
Some time ago, I found out about Panda Bee on social media via a diner who had tried out their food and posted about it. There was a lot of positive buzz about their food, particularly their fish and chips. The large portions, along with very reasonable pricing, were one of the biggest draws. Thus, I gathered some dining companions, and we made our way down to try their food out.
Panda Bee is located in a quiet Yishun neighbourhood kopitiam. Their bright signboard and adorable mascot stood out among the other stalls, and a heavy smell of fried food wafted from it.
Panda Bee’s menu isn’t the one pictured on the signboard – it’s actually several sheets of laminated paper, taped over what looked like a much larger menu fit for a full-service restaurant. When I asked the affable owner why this was so, he explained that due to both a lack of manpower and space, he wasn’t able to offer everything. Whatever is available for the day is indicated on the laminated sheets.
What I tried at Panda Bee
Unfortunately, there was no pasta or baked rice available when we went, so after some discussion amongst ourselves, we got the British Fish and Chip (S$7.90), Chicken Chop (S$6.90), and Buttermilk Chicken Burger (S$7.50).
When my dining companion said she wanted the burger, the owner looked at her and chuckled. “You want the burger? I bet you won’t be able to finish it,” he said with a grin. We seemed puzzled at first, but we understood why shortly when the food was ready.
Everything is prepared to order – there’s no pre-cooked food just sitting around waiting to be warmed up. I stood in the narrow corridor in front of the stall to watch the cook prepare the food.
Upon seeing him pull out an entire slab of fish to dredge in batter, I asked what fish they used for the British Fish and Chip. “Whitefish,” was the reply. About 15 minutes later, our food was ready.
We laid out our mains together and wondered what we had gotten ourselves into. Everything was huge!
The British Fish and Chip was quite literally the length of my companion’s entire forearm. I don’t recall the last time I’d ever seen a fish and chips this big.
Cutting through the beautifully crisp batter revealed flakey, still-moist fish. The batter had a subtle peppery hint that went well with the fish, which we guessed was likely pollock. The accompanying tartar sauce tied everything together wonderfully. My only nitpick was that the batter had some soggy spots on the inside.
The accompanying fries were decent, but one of my other dining companions remarked that he would have preferred a more robust potato taste.
The Chicken Chop is served with a choice of either Port Wine or Black Pepper Sauce, and we opted for the latter. It’s given in a small plastic cup, so you can choose to either dip it, or slather the sauce all over the chicken like we did. You also get one and a half chicken thighs per portion, which is awfully generous.
The chicken chop was well-seasoned, juicy and grilled till the skin was crisped up. The black pepper sauce was quite ordinary, but it did the job. A very enjoyable and competently executed chop.
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When we took a look at the Buttermilk Chicken Burger, we finally understood why the owner had said it would be a challenge to finish. It consisted of 2 large pieces of deep-fried chicken with a craggy buttermilk-based batter, and 2 pieces of torched, melted cheese. The burger was as big as my face.
Cutting it in half revealed the thickness of the pieces of chicken, each still moist and extremely appetising. A thick slice of tomato and fresh lettuce graced the bun, but seemed almost insignificant to the massive amounts of poultry.
Despite us trying our best, none of us were able to unhinge our jaws and take a bite of the entire burger. We decided the best way to tackle this was to cut the burger up into quarters. The bun was buttery and well-toasted, but leaned a bit dry.
The batter of the chicken was very crunchy, and the meat flavourful and juicy. I couldn’t really taste the flavour of the batter as it was overpowered by the generous amounts of mayonnaise and cheese. We agreed that if there was a touch less sauce on the burger, it would be more balanced.
Final thoughts
We could already feel a food coma setting in before we were even two-thirds through our meal. By the end, we were ready to roll over. (And no, we didn’t manage to completely conquer the Buttermilk Chicken Burger. The owner came by to check on us and expressed his awe that we got most of it, so A for effort…?)
Giant portions aside, Panda Bee’s food was genuinely good and prepared with a lot of care. I can’t wait to return and try more of their menu, especially the baked rice and pasta dishes.
Expected damage: S$6.90 – S$12.90 per pax
